


Blossoming Sultana

by Muse_Calliope



Category: Aladdin (1992), Aladdin (2019), Aladdin: The Animated Series, Disney - All Media Types
Genre: Arranged Marriage, F/M, Jasmine's Mother - Freeform, Pre-Aladdin, Prequel, Sultana of Agrabah
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-08
Updated: 2019-10-09
Packaged: 2020-04-12 14:52:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19134310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Muse_Calliope/pseuds/Muse_Calliope
Summary: A key figure forgotten in history. Her memory kept alive only by her husband and daughter. She was Sultana Azalea, Queen of Agrabah and former Princess of Sherebad.





	1. A rule written in stone

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! So this fic is about the life of Princess Jasmine's mom, who got mentioned a lot more in the new live-action version. So inspired from multiple different Aladdin sources and admittedly other Disney works as well I really wanted to explore the logic behind why the whole “Princesses must be married before their next birthday” law thing. I ended up naming Jasmine's mother Azalea to follow the flower name theme. Hope y'all enjoy~

Sitting primly on her bed, Princess Azalea of Sherebad was being informed by her mother that the Sultan would now be inviting princes from other nations to come and court her. She would, of course, have the final verdict on who her future husband would be but only from the pool of contestants already selected for her. Azalea kept her head held high as her mother finished speaking, hands on her lap with her nails digging into her palms. She realized, belatedly, that her mother was waiting for her to respond. There were thousands of thoughts running through her mind that there was only one word she could muster out at that time.  

“Why?” She whispered, not trusting herself to not shout should she speak any louder. Only then did she allow her head to fall, if only to avert her eyes from her mother's sympathetic stare.

“My darling,” The Queen said softly as she came to sit on the bed next to her daughter, taking one of Azalea’s hands into hers, “the law says you must be married to a prince before your next birthday”

Gazing out of her window, hearing the familiar muffled sounds of the city fill the quiet room she declared “The law is wrong then“ 

“My love, it is for your own good.”

“What good does it do for Sherebad to have Achmed on the throne!”

Being the eldest daughter of the Sultan, Azalea had simply assumed she would inherit the throne. Now, it seemed, the future ruler would actually be her arrogant younger brother, who seemed more interested in flashy displays of wealth than actually running the country.

The Queen pursed her lips, gripping her hand firmer than before. “Achmed will learn to be Sultan and you will learn to be a wife”

“How can you not see the injustice of this?” Azalea stood, hand slipping out of her mothers grasp and her shoulders shaking “I will be relegated to being a  _ wife _ of a foreign prince in his foreign kingdom instead of being the ruler of mine because of a ludicrous archaic law that-”

Her mother held up her hand, silencing her protests.

“Dear daughter how can you not see the benefit of this archaic law? The sooner you are betrothed, the sooner Sherebad gains a new and stronger ally” She paused, hesitating for a moment before sighing “And the less likely it is that you will be coerced into marrying someone far worse than a foreign prince.”

There was another pause. With her blood seemingly pumping in her ears, Azalea could no longer hear the city below as she waited for her mother to continue.

“There are powerful beings beyond our castle walls my dear. Beings of phenomenal cosmic powers bound to a single master, with the single purpose of granting their heart's desire” 

“The djinn you mean..” Azalea shook her head “ That is pure legend mother what does this have to do with my betrothal?”

“Not legend darling, completely true. All one must do is find this lamp and become the djinn’s master. It is just our prayer that no one who finds this lamp has the wish to become Sultan of Sherebad by forcing the heir to the throne to fall in love and marry them.”

Azalea scoffed “Could he not just wish us all dead and take the throne?”

“He most likely could” the Queen answered as she stood up “It is just my belief that he would be Sultan for only a day before our citizens and allies come to usurp him. You see my dear, the love of the people is more powerful than any magic. They are loyal to the person, not the crown”

“And if I happen to “marry” this impostor, you believe they would accept him as Sultan?”

“Yes, because you have their love, and their trust ” Pressing her lips to her daughter temple “ Please understand you will keep us all safe, married and in another kingdom, understand that you will be gifting Sherebad a powerful alliance."

Leaning towards her mother, Azalea took a shuddered breath "It is too much expected of me."

"The life of a princess is not an easy one. She guards the hopes of her people, weak and mighty, rich and poor. She must humbly serve her kingdom”

Recognizing the old quotes she had studied as a little girl, Azalea spoke the last piece with her mother  " She must make every sacrifice in the name of her country.”

With that, the Queen calmly left her daughter alone to digest her words and to contemplate her next course of action.


	2. Here comes a wave

 

“A princess must make every sacrifice in the name of her country.” Her mother's words had weighed on Azalea’s mind for about a week now. In that week, invitations had been sent to several nations with eligible princes.

She had come to terms that she would have to abdicate the throne of Sherebad and she would welcome her would-be suitors with open arms. It was the eventual departure of her beloved kingdom that plagued her.

Every night since her mothers visit, Azalea had dreams of her marriage to a faceless prince, of living in his foreign palace and hearing of famine or illness ravishing Sherebad in her absence. She would beg and plead to her husband to send aid only to be rebuffed and dismissed. Her new kingdom was far away enough that she could not run to them but close enough to hear their cries of pain.

And every night she would wake in cold sweat, shivering, trying desperately to fight back tears that had already gathered at the corners of her eyes. Logically, Azalea knew her brother would not inherit the throne right after her departure. The Sultan was still strong in body and even stronger in mind. If any illness or tragedy of any kind were to befall her beloved kingdom, the people would have a wise and seasoned leader to see them through trying times. Nothing to stay awake worrying about.

Slowly the princess felt her eyes grow heavier and heavier. In her sleep-muddled mind, she wished she had a djinn to make her sleep through the night without issue. In that instant Azaleas eyes snapped open.

Mere hours ago, the Queen had confirmed all the stories of magical wish-granting beings were true! They would only serve the one who released them of their lamp. What if that person...was her? Sitting up Azaleas mind started to wander. With the help of the djinn, could she find a way to free herself from this horrid situation? It was late, and unlikely anyone of the royal family would be awake. The sacrifice she would make for the people of Sherebad would be sleep Azalea decided, quickly climbing out of bed.

Slipping on her robe, the princess left her room and quietly made her way towards the small library on this side of the castle. Had this epiphany happened earlier in the day, Azalea could have returned from the much larger library located towards the east wing of the castle but that could wait until tomorrow. Tonight, though, she started her research by combing through any book that contained even the slightest mention of the djinn.

While it was much more difficult, and took much longer, to skim through books in the dark of night, the princess had managed to find three books related to the djinn.

Content with her findings, Azalea started making her way back towards her chambers, calmly nodded towards any guard she passed, hoping that her face did not betray the nervousness she felt. Once back, Azalea eagerly sank back into her bed and allowed sleep to overtake her.

 

* * *

 

 

Now that she was to attract suitors, the princess found drastic changes made to her daily routine. She was to be awoken by her handmaidens at an earlier hour to begin her beauty regimen beginning with her milk and honey bath.

“Is this really necessary?”

“Of course Princess” Replied one of the girls “ This will give you soft and supple skin”

Another girl was washing out the egg yolk that had been placed in Azalea’s hair, using two small bowls as to not let the water run into the tub. It was all very...suffocating. Before there would be two girls in the room to aid her at most, now there was at least six. One had prepared her bath, another had mixed the egg yolk with almond oil, whilst two scrubbed her body of all dirt and grime. The last girl was standing with a towel in her hand ready to dry off the princess.

Perhaps Azalea would not have been so vexed if the hovering had stopped there but sadly, it continued. After her bath, the six girls would be replaced by three near-identical sisters. She had heard rumors that these girls were triplets but had never asked. Not that the girls were much for conversation, they came, did what was asked of them and left.

After helping her get dressed, the eldest took rose-water and patted it on to Azalea’s face. One of her sisters then took aloe vera and spread it across the princess’s cheeks and forehead. The last sister was combing through Azaleas hair, drying sections as she went along.

After her hair was dried, the three sisters would begin styling it. Previously Azalea was able to ask for her hair to be done in a ponytail or simple braid but these looks were deemed too juvenile for a young woman about to be engaged. Now the sisters needed to find a hairstyle that made her look elegant and mature. For today, they decided on a sleek bun that rested near the nape of her neck. Azalea felt that it made her seem like she was mimicking her mother but said nothing. She felt too tired to speak more than a few words at a time.

Her eyes felt heavy and so she closed them for only a moment but when she did, she found the three sisters had left. Now, waiting to be acknowledged was the girl from earlier, the one that held her towel.

“Pardon me, Princess,” The girl said quietly” I was asked to do your makeup"

Holding back a yawn that threatened to escape, Azalea nodded “ I am sorry for falling asleep, I suppose I’m just not used to waking up so early” Or going to sleep so late, she thought to herself.

“I understand m’ lady”

She decided to start on the princess’s eyes, lining them carefully with kohl. Picking up some rouge, the handmaiden dabbed some on Azalea’s lips and then used the leftover on her cheeks. Then she stopped.

“What’s wrong?” Inquired Azalea as she noticed the girl tilting her head slightly, brows furrowed. “ Do-” She stood up and looked towards the window “ Do you hear screaming?”

Both girls soon made their way towards the window, where Azalea did hear screams raising from the city. This was mostly caused by the enormous ship docked at the harbor. The enormous warship that was.


	3. Silenced

  Azalea stood at the window, eyes fixated upon the ship in an urgent attempt to identify its origin if the kingdom was dealing with friends or foe. The harbor was, unfortunately, too far away to make out any detail that would help. The soldiers pouring out from the ship, however, were swiftly making their way through the crowds, coming closer to the castle at an alarming rate.

  Heart in her throat, the princess tore her gaze away from the window, instead looking towards her handmaid in a last attempt to hold on to hope. Hope that her kingdom was not being descended upon by foreign invaders, for hope that the soldiers were allies there simply to guard their royal envoy. But there was no royal ship docked in the harbor, just like there was no hope in her handmaiden's eyes. Only naked fear.

  Taking a step backward, Azalea now felt completely defenseless and exposed being so close to the window. Who was to say there were not more soldiers or spies that were sent ahead of the giant mass in the streets. She needed to find her family, make sure they all headed deeper into the castle, preferably into one of their re-enforced rooms with guards and weapons. The princess rushed to close the window curtains and grabbed the other girl's wrist.

“It is too dangerous to stay here, we need to find my family. There should be guards protecting them”

  Her servant only bit her lip and shook her head, “ No my princess we musn’t, it is safer here in your room. We have no idea who may be lurking past those doors and what if guards are sent to retrieve you? You will be missing in the middle of all this chaos.” The princess gave her a small, bitter smile and shook her head, “I doubt that I am a priority at this moment”.

  With another tug at the handmaid’s wrist, Azalea pulled them both towards her door and pressed her ear near the keyhole. The screams coming from the streets made it hard to make sure but the outside of her chambers seemed oddly quiet. She had expected for maids and footmen to be running about, eager to find an open room or closet to barricade themselves into. All the princess could hear were footsteps that sounded nearby, no orders shouted or worried whispers, no noise all too close to her quarters. This put her on edge, the castle was never meant to be this silent. Blowing out a puff of air, the princess scanned the room in search of a heavy and preferably sharp tool to take with them, just in case…

  Spotting a broom that had been left earlier in the day, as well as a few candlesticks Azalea made up her mind to use them as her defensive weapons. “Get that broomstick by the dresser while I take one of the candlesticks” She commanded, already crossing her room to retrieve it. Her handmaid followed, reluctantly and in much less of a rush than the princess would have liked. Taking a deep breath, Azalea wasted no time in pushing open her door and peering out into the hallways. Still quiet, perhaps even quieter than before.

“Which way should we go your highness?”

“It will take us longer to reach the throne room if we follow the path west” The princess answered, “However the southern path leads us towards the open stairwell.”

  Azalea hoped to follow more private halls and stairways, but with each passing minute, that army grew closer. She did not want to be out in the open, private halls or not when they reached the palace gates. Gripping the candlestick tightly in one hand, and holding the handmaids’ in the other, the princess led them towards the southern path. By now all noise had ceased from her wing, the footsteps she heard before were gone. But that didn’t mean they were alone.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY YALL!! Guess who did move over the summer. It has been super hectic and I am so sorry I haven't updated in a while. So much goes into moving and getting situated, I'm really just trying to get my life back in order. I know you guys deserve a long chapter for the wait but the identity of this army will have to wait until next time I update, which will be soon btw. In the meantime, I have made a Tumblr acc ( its-muse-calliope-love ) so if you guys wanna follow me over there, that'll be great :)

**Author's Note:**

> I'll try to post longer chapters every Wednesday and Saturday. I will be moving soon so updates may falter just a bit. See you soon~


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